Vol. 443 No. 7
33 Miss Harney asked the Minister for Social Welfare in view of the recent report commissioned by the Disability Federation of Ireland showing the demand for respite care places, the plans, if any, he has to increase the respite care fund beyond the £500,000 allocated by him in 1994.
The report in question was commissioned with the aid of a £15,000 grant from my Department under the scheme of grants to voluntary organisations in the social services area. It is a very useful and constructive report with a number of recommendations in this area relevant to the services provided by health boards and to the respite care fund itself.
The report recommends that the respite care fund should focus on funding projects designed to alleviate the burden on carers in the first instance, rather than respite care places in institutions. The report specifically recommends that my Department should consider funding holiday schemes run by voluntary organisations in the field and indeed I was able to allocate grants for a number of projects of this nature under the 1993 scheme. The recommendations in the report that relate to my Department's role in this area are being considered in my Department at present.
The original allocation for the respite care fund in 1993 was £500,000 and I secured Government approval towards the end of the year to double the allocation to £1 million, by diverting savings that became available in my Department at that time. The Deputy can be assured that I will continue to make support for carers and provision of resources for respite breaks a priority.
